A protest against the sale of lads’ mags was staged at numerous Tesco stores around the country today.

In an effort to force Britain’s largest retailer to ditch magazines such as Zoo and Nuts, the Lose the Lads’ Mags campaign pitched up in cities ranging from Manchester, London, Portsmouth and Glasgow from midday for one hour.

The campaign, spearheaded by women’s rights groups Object and UK Feminista, is against the sexualisation and objectification of women, as well as the exposure of such images to children.

The group says that lads’ mags ‘fuel sexist behaviours and attitudes underpinning violence against women’, adding: ‘Tesco would never allow “girlie calendars” on their office walls. Why are they choosing to stock degrading, pornographic lads’ mags on their shelves?’

Activists said it would talk to consumers outside Tesco stores and collect signatures in a ‘family-friendly protest’.

Lads’ mags are currently sold in Co-operative stores, although the store has asked them to cover up in modesty bags (Picture: PA)

The latest wave of action comes weeks after the Co-operative issued an ultimatum to numerous lads’ mags such as Zoo and Front, which gave them the option of concealing sexy images in modesty bags before September 9 – or expect to be thrown out of stores.

Kat Banyard, the founder of UK Feminista, said: ‘As long as Tesco sells lads’ mags like Nuts and Zoo its claims of being a responsible corporate citizen are a farce.

‘Tesco needs to put women’s safety before profit and lose the lads’ mags.’

The row over the depiction of women and sexualisation of young girls has intensified over the last few weeks, with David Cameron promising a wave of reforms that would restrict the exposure of pornographic material to children, particularly on the internet.

He did, however, stop short of condemning The Sun’s infamous Page 3, saying in July: ‘This is an area where we should leave it to consumers to decide, rather than to regulators.’

Campaigners are trying to abolish the sale of lads’ mags from supermarkets and other retailers (Picture: PA Wire/Press Association Images)

The No More Page 3 campaign, which began last year, has welcomed today’s protests and said that they, too, were not against voicing their concerns in a day of action outside of retailers.

‘Protests are a great way of engaging with the public about the issue,’ said founder Lucy Holmes.

‘We support the Lads Mags campaign because since we started the No More Page 3 petition last year, we’ve lost count of the amount of parents who have written to us saying “can you do something about lads’ mags and the cover of The Sport and Star as well.”‘